Chapter 2

Disclaimer: I don't own the Vampire Diaries. I'm just borrowing. Only the story belongs to me.

Note: Previously, in "Rolling in the Deep," Caroline is left at the altar by her would-be groom and decides to start over in New Orleans.

Hey, guys! Yeah, I know I fell behind, but real life was hectic and I wasn't really feeling well. Anyway, I think I can update my AU/AH. No spoilers.

HERE WE GO!

Hybrid Nightclub, New Orleans, Louisiana – 7 Years Later…

Klaus Mikaelson hummed to himself as he worked in his sketchbook. He had gotten inspired recently in a dream to create another drawing. While he didn't know who the woman in the dream was, but she was beautiful enough to immortalize in the book in his hands. Klaus was an artist in addition to being the owner of the Hybrid Nightclub, which had opened its doors two years ago. The club was thriving, much to his delight.

He was just about to put the finishing touches on his creation when a knock at his office door brought him back to reality. Klaus, curious as to who would be interrupting him, placed the book on the desk and went to answer it. He opened it and saw his brother, Elijah, standing there.

"Was I interrupting anything?" he asked.

"No, not at all," said Klaus. "What can I do for you, brother?"

"I wanted to discuss the gala you're planning on hosting."

Klaus nodded. "What about it? You don't think it's too ambitious?"

"No, far from it, in fact," said Elijah. "It'll really draw more attention to this place." He noticed the open sketchbook on the desk and picked it up. "I see you've created another masterpiece. I take it you were visited again by your muse?"

"Indeed," said Klaus. "She has visited me many times."

"She's quite a beauty, like my Amelia," said Elijah. "Has she told you her name?"

Klaus shook his head. "No. I've asked her and she hasn't revealed her identity. The only thing she's told me is that I'll know her name when the time is right."

"Well, don't be discouraged, Niklaus. Your 'mystery muse' will reveal herself to you." He spotted the newspaper, which was open to the Classifieds section. "Perhaps it'll be when you get an answer to the ad you placed in the paper?"

"I've had several responses to that bloody ad," said Klaus. "So far, none of them have panned out and I'm starting to wonder if I'll ever get the right candidate for the Assistant Manager position. How hard is it to find someone to fill a position like that?"

Elijah was about to respond when their brother-in-law, Stefan walked in. He was also the club's bouncer and quite good at it. Granted, he had to break up a few fights (and get punched a few times in the process), but it paid the bills, especially now that he and Rebekah were expecting their first child, a boy they were naming Dante Vincent. He was still pretty banged up from his shift the previous evening, which Elijah noticed as soon as the younger man entered the office.

"My word, Stefan," he said. "You look like you went fifteen rounds in a Heavyweight title fight."

Stefan smiled weakly. "You should see the other guy. I put him in the hospital for thinking he could jump me while I was trying to keep things polite. A bouncer's work is never done." He sighed, his smile fading. "Though, I'm wondering how Rebekah is going to react to this. She told me that she hates the fact I have such a dangerous job."

"Leave Rebekah to me," said Elijah. "She'll be angry, yes, but at least it'll soften the blow for when you speak to her." He turned to Klaus. "I'll leave you two to your meeting. I've got that phone call to make."

Klaus nodded and when Elijah left, he turned his attention to Stefan, who was curious about why he had been called here, especially since he thought he'd have the day off to recover from his injuries.

"I'm sure you're wondering why I asked you here."

"I am, actually," said Stefan. "If this is about last night, I promise that I had everything under control."

"No, it's not," said Klaus. "You did your job admirably, as you always do."

"Then why am I here?"

"I'm sure you probably heard that I'm planning on hosting a gala event here at the club."

"No," said Stefan. "It sounds like a great idea. When is it going to be taking place?"

"I was thinking of having it soon, probably tomorrow evening," said Klaus.

"Tomorrow evening?" said Stefan. "That's kind of short notice. The announcements will have to sent out and the club will have to be decorated. No offense, Klaus, the staff will need time to get everything set up." He eyed his brother-in-law curiously. "This wouldn't have anything to do with the gala Marcel is hosting at his club, would it?"

Klaus growled at the mention of that name. Marcel Gerard had been a protege of his, who started out as an intern from Tulane. During the time he worked for Klaus, he was eager to learn and absorbed everything like a sponge. However, after graduating from Tulane, Marcel decided to go into business for himself and opened a club of his own, and they had been in competition with each other ever since, something Klaus never liked discussing.

"You...might say that, yes. I want to make mine even better than his."

Stefan nodded. He instantly regretted asking about Marcel, but he was curious about the spontaneous planning of the gala. He decided to change the subject.

"Do you think you'll have an Assistant Manager hired by then?"

Klaus' growl changed to a smile. "Oh, I think we'll find the right person for the job. As I told Elijah, none of the previous candidates were what I was looking for. You know me, Stefan, I don't give up, even when it looks like nothing is going according to plan."

Stefan nodded again. "Well, I wish you luck in your search."

He excused himself from the room but not before spying the sketchbook on Klaus' desk. The woman in the pictures looked familiar to him, but he couldn't quite put his finger on it. He tried to remember, but nothing seemed to jump out at him. He finally decided it wasn't important and walked out, hoping that Elijah was able to smooth things over with Rebekah.

Note: Thank you for being patient. This new chapter was figuratively kicking my butt. Anyway, here is Chapter 2 of "Rolling in the Deep." I originally wanted to have Caroline be the focus, but decided on Klaus instead. Don't worry, they'll meet in the next chapter. Stay tuned!

ENJOY THE UPDATE AND REMEMBER TO REVIEW!